A drunk driver convicted of killing three people in New Mexico will now go to jail for nine years and four months. But the family of the victims questions why he got off with what they see as such a short sentence. What the family didn't know was that the prison time could have been even less.

Last year on July Fourth, Jason Wentz says he lost his reasons for living. He was behind the wheel of his family's car when a drunk driver crashed into him head-on in the Navajo Nation. Jason and his niece suffered major injuries, but his wife, 11-month-old daughter and 8-year-old stepdaughter were killed.

Advertisement

Now Wentz agonizes over the sentence given the man convicted of drunk driving, Sijifredo Rodriguez-Gandara

"Nine years for three lives? You can't equate it like that," Wentz said.

But defense attorney Jerry Walz said the sentence was just.

"To this particular event in this circumstance, 9 years, 4 months is a correct and fair sentence," Walz said.

Rodriguez was sentenced in federal court because the crash happened on Indian land. Prosecutors argued that he had 20 beers, did not sleep for two nights before the wreck and had a blood alcohol level nearly three times the legal limit. They asked the judge for the maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

"We're happy. We think the judge's sentence does address the severity of the conduct under the federal statutes and guidelines," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Chuck Barth. "However, that's something for Congress to look at as to whether or not those penalties are severe enough."

For a family that says they can't breathe without each other, that says their damaged souls are worse than death, how much prison time would be enough?

"Two hundred years wouldn't have been enough, but I think they should get tougher on that law," said Calvery Hogue, whose daughter was killed in the wreck.

Raphelita Rivas, whose daughter was injured, agreed. "DWI laws need to be stricter. Nine years is not long enough," Rivas said.

Wentz said there's no amount of time that would have been enough for him.

"Nine years? No, I'll still be living with this in nine years," Wentz said.

Changes are on the way. New, tougher federal sentencing guidelines for DWI go into effect in November.